We often hear spokespersons on finance label open economies like Barbados as being vulnerable to exogenous shocks. All agree this economic interdependence translates to what happens in one country will impact others to varying degrees.

During the COVID 19 pandemic which caused interruptions to ‘global supplies’ was an extreme example. Generally delays in manufacturing and delivery of raw materials caused in country A, negatively affected the manufacturing of a commodity in country B. Of recent has been the pivot by the Trump administration to implement aggressive protectionists measures by utilising tariffs and renegotiating trade agreements. There is the OLD saying when the USA has a cold, small states will sneeze.

After several years of countries like Barbados buying into a brand of neoliberal economics, it should be crystal clear that open economies like Barbados, it is not a sustainable model and only serves to feed the political rhetoric of lazy politicians and acolytes. The time has come for a bold thinking by developing countries to stoke an alternative narrative that better serves the interest of small developing states. The willingness of successive governments – including Barbados – to subscribe to political mimicry has created a dependent, non-performance economic and political culture.

Fundamental to why citizens should offer themselves to the public in our system of government is to satisfy a civic and moral desire to want to make the ‘system’ better. There must be a good mix of idealism tempered with being pragmatic and opportunistic because we do not live in a perfect world, we are human beings after all. At the root of what is required to change is good leadership.

Recently while wading through voluminous information stored on the Internet the following quote caught the attention. It encapsulates the core concern of many .

Sharks don’t know that camels exist and they don’t know that they don’t know. Immersing yourself in a single ecosystem ensures that you don’t know what is going on outside it.  That’s whats wrong with most of society. It only knows what it knows.  It does not know what it does not know.  It’s unconsciously incompetent. To solve this you need to open up your world to new content , experiences and people.  Be on a journey to learn , unlearn and relearn.

–Internet

The nugget of wisdom forced the blogmaster to question if there is an adequate level of thought leadership circulating in the country. Many have stated that we need less talk(ers) in high places. We need leaders at all levels of society who are not afraid to be transformational and open in outlook by implementing relevant homegrown policies that are designed to unleash the full force of our authentic selves. The blogmaster does not know of a simpler way to express the need for undiscovered leaders to step up.

It must be reiterated that potential leaders walk among us but many are reluctant to step forward. We are back to the chicken and egg position. A citizen interested in public service should in theory not be deterred by the faulty system. However we know this to be an idealistic position. The 64k question therefore – how do we create conditions that change the current space citizens have to operate to produce the best leaders? The current system has allowed ‘bottom feeders’ to flourish.